Carnations Amoris'
by CelticChocolateLover
Summary: He promised me eternal life and in return he would bestow upon me all the treasures that my mortal world had denied me. As he took my hand and we stepped into the night, I could only think of my new life as Duchess of the Damned.
1. Duchess of the Damned

**My Rosebud-Duchess of the Damned**

**The Original Mrs. Farrelly **

The terror that I felt during still ices my blood as I remember that strange and fateful night. It started out with me awakening inside a huge room on a fluffy bed. I sat up and tried to make out what was in the room with me, but it was too dark to see anything. The only source of light was the moon outside, which was shining from a balcony door. I can remember having the sensation of being home when I knew that I wasn't. I got up and walked towards the balcony. I could distinctly hear the sound of raindrops hitting the balcony doors as I opened them. As I stepped outside, I expected to feel wind and rain whipping at my face, hear the distinct sound of thunder and see the bright lightning. But somehow there was no rain, only lightning and wind. But the wind was not high; in fact it was calm and warm as the lightening in the sky seemed to grow more frantic.

Then the feeling starts. The wind turns icy cold as it swirls around me and the hair on the back of my neck stands up. These are the only signs that I have come to know when _he_ arrives. I do not know who he is, but he makes me feel a mixture of conflicting feelings and sensations. His presence is intimidating but warm and inviting. As he moves across the floor towards me I can't hear his footsteps as he walks on the wood stained floor but I can sense that he is right behind me. The wind is now swirling around us and I notice that he carries an exotic sent. I can't quite figure out what it is but I don't put much thought to it as I see him wrap his arms around me. I want to resists, to yell out, "Unhand me you unearthly being but I can't compel myself to. Instead I turn around and wrap my arms around him, laying my head upon his chest. His hand comes up to lovingly stroke my raven locks, as he whispers something in Latin. I look up at him and I am surprised to find his eyes changing colors from clear to a shade of green that I have never witnessed before. He lifts my chin up to meet his burning gaze and brushes his lips against mine.

"I have such sights to show you, my little rosebud. So many sweet words to whisper in your ear, so much pleasure to show your body. I can give you these things….and more." He moves down further towards my neck, placing feather like kisses onto my skin. He licks at my pulse point, where I am sure he can see my jugular vein pulsing with blood. I lean my head over to let him have more access. He brushes his lips over my neck, his nostrils flaring as he took my scent in.

I lift my head up once more to look into his eyes and watched as two glistening white fangs protruded from his mouth. "All you have to do is say yes, and I can give you everything that you have ever wanted. Please, say yes."

He was a vampire, and he was going to drink my blood! But for some odd reason, I was not afraid. Instead, I wanted to feel his fangs pierce my flesh, listen as my blood slowly slid down his throat. It was all so erotic. My brain was screaming to say no, but the temptation to say yes was entirely too much.

"Yes, take me now."

His teeth nipped at my neck before his fangs sank into my jugular vein. My moans pierced the air as he drank deeply from my neck. He picked me up cradle style and walked over to the plush Victorian bed. He continued to drink for a few more minutes before pulling his fangs out. For just a second, our eyes met, and there was nothing but pure lust and desire pooling there.

"Nunc non est reversio. Hac nocte, unum erimus." He pulls out a blade made of silver and gold with a strange symbol on it. He uses the tip of the blade to cut into his flesh. Holding his wrist to my mouth, he spoke again in Latin and his eyes began to glow red.

"Drink my love. Tonight is a new beginning." He lifted his wrist to my mouth. I eagerly latched on, licking the cut first before suckling. His blood was warm as it caressed my throat. I continued until he pulled his wrist away. He licked the wound once and the cut instantly healed as I watched in fascination until I started to feel funny. I suddenly felt as if my throat was on fire, and it was spreading over my body quickly. My skin felt like it was being peeled off. I fell back onto the bed holding my throat trying to breathe but it wasn't working. But just as quickly as the sensation began, it ended. I could feel my body changing as my hair got longer and changed from raven black to dark brown with a red hue to it, my fingernails grew longer and gained a sharper edge to them, and my skin grew lighter, from russet brown to blush pink. Slowly the pain faded away, until I was able to sit up on my own. Offering his hand, my "master" helped me off of the bed and pulled me to my feet. "You have been reborn, rosebud. Welcome to the dark side." Together, we listened to the sounds of the night. It was no longer storming, but I could still hear thunder in the distance, the faint hint on rain lingered in the air. We walked outside onto the balcony and stood basking in the aftermath of the storm. I rested my head on his massive chest and closed my eyes. This was so wrong, but it felt so right.

My first night into darkness, and I have never felt more alive. This is my rebirth. My curse. My blessing. This is my journey into becoming Monáe, Duchess of the Damned .


	2. Introduction to Dark Royalty Pt 1

Carnation Amoris Chapter 2

My first night as a vampire, though surprising at times, was very relaxing. My sire catered to my every whim, and pampering me as though I was a queen. We left the balcony and returned to the bedroom to wash off the world's grime. He undressed rather quickly. I began to do the same until his deep voice penetrated my thoughts.

"No. Allow me," he said as he knelt before me to take my black heeled pumps off. At first I was a bit taken aback by how kind he was being. After all, I was taught in my mortal life that vampires, creatures like him didn't exist and if they did they would be brutes, but here I was with a man who was a myth come true who in turn had selected me to be his eternal mate. His affection towards me was anything but. I could only hope he wasn't pretending.

"Why would I pretend to love a woman that I have waited 19 centuries looking for? I simply can't see myself doing such a thing." His answer shocked me. When I was a mortal, no man cared to show me affection because they thought I had no need for it. Why waste their feelings on someone whose only purpose was to satisfy their sexual needs. Thinking back now, I should have demanded it but I thought that I didn't deserve it.

"You must stand up for yourself, never for a second allow or think that another will do it for you."

"Including you?" For a moment, the light in his eyes dimmed and he held his head down. "Yes, even me."

If only for a second, I saw a glimmer of sadness in his eyes before it disappeared. My answer must have upset him. I pulled my foot from his gentle grasp. Leaning down, I placed my hand underneath his chin to tilt his head up. "Is there a reason why there is such sadness behind your eyes, sweetheart? He looked as though he were trying to decide whether to tell me or not. Finally, he stood to his full height and walked over towards the bed. Sitting down, he glanced up and motioned with his hand for me to come closer.

"Come, little one."

I had no idea what he had said, but walked over to him regardless. I'd ask him about it later. I felt that what he was going to say would be important. As I neared him, his arms reached out for me. Confused at first, Monáe recognized that he wanted her to sit on his lap, to which she happily obliged to. When she got comfortable, he began to speak.

"I bet you are wondering why I chose you for my mate?"

It really hadn't crossed her mind, but in a way she did want to know. She really wasn't what you would call beautiful, and attractive was stretching the truth a bit.

"Now that you mention it…yes. Why did you? There are so many other girls that are better looking than me-"

"But not one of them possesses the heart, strength, kindness, or power that you do. You have special qualities about you, Monáe. You would be surprised."

Monáe blushed furiously at his revelation. It felt nice to have someone notice her for once, even if it was from a man who had lived over 1900 years and had seen every woman that walked that ever walked the face of the earth.

"As to what I was saying. You possess all these qualities, but you have a fierceness that swells inside you. That will come in play because you are going to enter a life that makes it impossible to wait for someone to defend you. You must do it yourself, or be looked at as a weakling."

Monáe didn't know what he meant. He acted as though it was a job or something.

"What do you mean enter a life? Is there something that you are not telling me?" She hoped to the vampire gods if there _was_ one, that he wouldn't ask her to leave her family behind forever, or even worse…kill them!

"I don't really know how to say this to you without upsetting you…but I have chosen you as mate for another reason besides the one I previously stated."

She tried to get up from his lap but tightened his arms around her waist, which caused her to get nervous. She feared the worst as the way he was talking was making her nervous. If he didn't speak now, she felt as though she was going to lose her mind. "Well, what is it? Spit it out!"

He sighed before continuing. "I am…a member of the royal family. It is similar to the one in the mortal world, but it is different in many ways." He stated it simply. It seemed he was holding his breath, hoping that she didn't get angry. Now Mark didn't scare easily, even his 1st mate Anya didn't ruffle his feathers in the slightest way when she would throw a tantrum. he would simply show her who was the dominate one and she would quiet down.

"I hope you are not angry, as I should have been truthful with you from the beginning. The elder's make the young royals disclose this kind of information."

"Why."

"So we do not attract a mate for the wrong reasons."

Monáe swore her heart stopped beating. So that explained one thing. Upon further inspection, she noticed that his robe was decorated in purple sapphire gemstones along with a crest that was embroidered onto the back. "So what does this have to do with me, besides being you're mate?"

"I am supposed to marry so I can keep my position to be next for the throne."


	3. Introduction to Dark Royalty Pt 2

There was a moment of silence between the. Finally Monáe decide to speak.

"So in other words there is a vampire royal family of sorts. Kind of like the British version, right? That's what you're saying?"

He didn't want to admit it but she was right. They had only known each other for 2 nights and she had already tapped into his innermost thoughts. She had basically told him what he had been trying to deny for 4 centuries of his life.

"Yes, in a warped sort of way. I guess it is. "He took time to gather his thoughts before he recognized an error on his part. "I don't even know your name. How rude of me to turn you into my mate and I haven't had the decency of asking your name."

A confused expression crossed her face before it dawned on her that what he said was true. "Well, my name is Monáe Rodriguez. And you are?" he laughed to himself. "Would you like my name before or after I became the creature that I am today?"

"If it's not too much trouble for you. I would like both please." She glanced at him and saw a faraway look in his eyes. It was gone as quickly as it appeared.

"My former name was Mark Calaway. My name or better yet my title here is Prince Marcus of Kensington." There was another moment of silence. 2 minutes later, her voice pierced the silence again.

"How did you become…what you are today? I mean, you couldn't have possibly consented to it." Their eyes met again and this time she couldn't look away. He sat back to get comfortable.

"Would you like me to start from the beginning, my sweet?" A grin appeared on her face at the endearment. "Anywhere you feel comfortable."

Once again he sat back and found a comfortable spot. "It was 1991 and the WWE was at the height of the sports entertainment industry and I was the leader of the pack. I was playing a character called the Lord of Darkness. My character was rumored to worship the devil and make sacrifices. I had two groups of henchmen called the Acolytes and the Brood. For the past 3 years as I developed into this character, I noticed a shadow following me everywhere I went. I never knew what it was but I figured that it was someone's shadow being cast on the wall. On the night that I was supposed to sacrifice Viscera, I was kidnapped by a woman who became my sire."

Completely captured by the story, Monáe's eyes told him what her mouth wouldn't say. "She told me her name was Princess Akantha and that she wanted me as her lover." He snorted "What we did was anything but love. If anything it was lust. She showed me how to kill unmercifully, without conviction or thought. She had me thinking that everyone was against me, against us. Then one day, she had sent me to kill a Baroness Samaria, saying that she had done something to wrong her, she never told me what. So I arrive at the woman's palace to carry out my orders and sitting in the corner of the room is this little girl. She couldn't have been any more than 7, 8 years old. She must have known what I was there to do because she was begging me not to harm her." Mark paused before continuing.

"Funny thing was she reminded me of my daughter before…" Mark put his head in his hands. Monáe could only wait as he took a deep breath. Whatever it was, it must have been deeply emotional. When he had gotten himself together, he stood from the bed, walked over towards the bay door and looked out of the glass.

"Anyway, we started talking; she told me that her name was Elis' Angela. I asked her how she managed to offend Akantha and do you know what she said to me?"

Monáe shook her head no and he continued his story. "She told me that Akantha felt threatened by her. I didn't understand. She explained that she was almost 10 centuries old. She had been turned in 1913, therefore making her the oldest living female vampire since Akasha. She shared the same abilities as her plus countless others. Akantha was wondering why she didn't have them because she was older than Elis by 4 decades. She even went as far as to demand that Queen Amber give her these powers. She outright refused, but told her why she never received them."

Mark turned back around to face Monáe, who was shaking her head. He could understand that this was a lot to swallow. Hell, she was probably wondering what window she could get out of. He swallowed audibly, too nervous to ask her if he should continue or not.

"She said that although she had matured in years and strength, she had not matured mentally. She felt that everyone would fear her if she used her looks and strength to get respect. I guess Akantha didn't like what she heard because I heard she tried to kill her."

A gasp broke the tense atmosphere. "How could she be so stupid as to attack the monarch? Does she have a death wish?"

He laughed a bit before quipping, "I guess she figured she could intimidate her, but Amber wasn't chosen to ascend the throne for nothing." They shared a laugh after that. "Well what else happened. Why aren't you with her anymore?"

"That night, she returned to our home and questioned me. She started asking me would I love her more if she was the queen, could I persuade Amber to make her stronger than the rest of the royals, things of that nature. At that time, all of the royals knew who I was. I was a household name and very much feared for the things that I had done. When I told her that there was nothing that I could do to help, her attitude changed. Akantha became furious, berating me, saying that I would be nothing without her. God, a dog wouldn't deserve the things that were said in that house. So pretty much after all was said and done, I left and never returned."

Their eyes met again. "Thank you for telling me this. I guess I understand now but I have one question. Is Akantha related to Akasha by any chance?"

Oh, Mark definitely liked this girl. Not only was she beautiful but she had brains too.

"Yes, she is. But that is a story for another time. Now Monáe, let's shower so we can get to bed."

"I hope that you don't think that just because I am your mate now, I'm supposed to submit to you. I don't give a damn how royal you are." Mark laughed as he led her into the bathroom. "Not a chance, my sweet. But I have thought about it."


	4. The New Queen

Monáe…

I had a pleasant rest. It was a little awkward when it came to the sleeping arrangements. Considering that we slept in separate bedrooms the first night I was turned, I was a little shocked when Mark told me that I was sleeping in his bed tonight. I tossed and turned but I couldn't rest.

"Go to sleep little one. You have a big day tomorrow. You will need all of you rest." For some reason I couldn't sleep. The information that I had learned hours ago was still rolling around in my mind. I had heard the name Akasha before, even read an excerpt on her but nothing was said about her having a daughter. The excerpt stated that Akantha was banished from Egypt like her mother and father, but for different reasons. While Akasha and Enkil nearly destroyed the civilization, her daughter saved it. But something went wrong. The resources were split unevenly with more going towards herself and her concierge. Soon she was banished and from there she disappeared.

"Do you want me to fix you some soup to help you sleep?"

"I thought that vampires couldn't eat normal food."

"We can. You don't even have to drink blood with every meal. Just make sure that you balance it. So do you want me to fix the soup?'

"Yes. That would be great."

Mark got out of bed and pattered out of the room. 26 minutes later a delectable scent tickled my nose as he brought a steaming bowl into the room on a tray.  
"Mmmm that smells heavenly. What kind is it?"

"It's chicken soup. My mom used to make it fresh parsley, and garlic. I guess that was her way of making it her own." I smiled as I started to eat. 7 minutes later I finished my meal and was happy, content, and suddenly sleepy.

"Ah, I see your eyes are dropping. Finally getting sleepy, aren't you?"I nodded my head. I wasn't going to try to fight it. Falling back onto the silk pillow case, I closed my eyes with a smile on my face.

(Next day)

I was shocked out of my sleep to someone knocking on the door. Turning over, I noticed Mark wasn't in the bed. Sighing, I found a robe to put on and answered the door. A man dressed in what looked like a copy of the RAF uniform in black adorned with a few awards stood there. Beside him stood another man that was dressed in servant garb with a tray in his hand.

"Miss Rodriguez, good morning. My name is Lt. Sherry. I am one of your personal guards. Prince Marcus has you sent clothing to wear for the day. When you are dressed, sit in the chair at the end of the hall and I will escort you to your sire." I accepted the box that he held in his hand as the servant came inside and placed the tray on a table then left. Closing the door behind me, I took the top of the box and was pleasantly surprised at what I found inside. A beautiful dark purple dress modestly covered with swavoski crystals that had an opened back covered with black lace. It was almost too beautiful to touch but I knew I had to get a move on. Gathering my essentials, I went into the bathroom to take my shower. Afterwards I walked back into the main room, only to find that 3 women were standing there.

"Who are you?" I didn't mean to sound so abrupt, but for them to come in without me knowing. Damn it I could have been naked!

"We are your servants. I apologize for the sudden intrusion but we are trained to help you with anything you may need or want. Today we are here to dress you to see the queen. As you can imagine, my mouth was agape. "The queen? What would she want with me?"

"We do not know. All we were assigned to do was dress you." I shrugged my shoulders. "Well, let's get started."

30 minutes later, I was dressed and my hair was swept up into a bun with tendrils hanging around my face. After saying goodbye to my "servants" and giving myself a final look over. I opened the door and walked down the hall towards my destination. I didn't have to wait long before another guard walked down the hall and stopped in front of me. "Lady Monáe, I have been ordered to escort you to the Maharet Compound. Come with me please." We walked through a series of long corridors and stairs until we arrived to two large glass and wooden doors. "Here is your coat, miss. It is quite nippy out this evening; he spoke as he wrapped the outerwear around my shoulders. A butler held the door open as we walked through it, quickly shutting it behind us.

"Now, have you ever ridden in a horse drawn carriage?"

"No, is that what we're riding in?"

"Yes. Here's a quick tutorial. Once you take the first step, you must keep going until you are seated because the carriage can tilt precariously. Getting out your steps must be precise and measured. Now that that's settled, we should be on our way." Once the carriage had pulled in front and come to a complete stop, Lt. Sherry ushered me inside. As we rode down the paved streets, my anxiety kicked in. What if she was calling me to the compound to tell me I couldn't see Marcus anymore? Or worse, that I wasn't good enough for him. I didn't get much time to think it over because we had arrived at our destination. I hiked my dress up around my ankles so I could see where I was stepping. Once I had lifted my head, I saw a smaller woman around 5ft tall, standing on the side of the carriage. The woman who was known as the queen. I curtsied deeply in respect.

"Thank you, but in a couple of days there will be others that must curtsey before you." I frowned, not knowing what she meant. "You have no idea what I'm talking about do you?" I shook my head no.

Smiling, she simply stated, "You are to be the new queen."


	5. A Little Clarity

"Come with me. We have much to discuss." Taking the lead with her guards forming a protective barrier around us, we walked inside. Along the way, I saw walls decorated with marble, ivory and gold. Beautiful paintings lined those them along with pedestals that held crown that were worn by Queen Nefertiti and King Ramses and mannequins that held immaculate royal clothing that had been worn by previous vampire rulers. After 5 flights of stairs, we were ushered inside her private quarters and the door was locked and guarded.

I stood there, dumbfounded. Me? A queen? No way! While the thought was very much tempting, I wasn't ready. I had only been a vampire not even a full week, learned about the vampire royal family just last night...God! It was way too much to process.

"I know it's a lot right now. But I need someone to take over for me until I reawaken." Once again, a puzzled look crossed my features. "Please don't think it rude of me your majesty, but it can't be because you are getting elderly. You look fine to me, and far as what I have been told by Prince Marcus the only critical enemy that you have is Akantha." A hiss escaped her lips and for the first time, I saw her facial features morph into that of a demon, and then change back to normal. "From what I have been told, you have no reason to fear her, for you are stronger than her."

She sighed. "That's the issue, sweetheart. You won't be able to understand without me telling the entire story, so I'll start from the beginning. You already know what happened to Akasha and Enkil, right? And that Akantha is her daughter?" I nodded yes. "There is more to her daughter's story than meets the eye. Her father, Enkil had a rather scandalous reputation. He believed that he was the reincarnated Ramses, going as far as to destroy the statues of deities that we worshipped. 3 years into his reign he was forced to abdicate the throne due to people trying to kill him, which Akasha followed. Since Akasha had her daughter first, Egypt was to have a new queen. But the royal court objected, saying that tradition called for it to be from father to son. Soon afterwards, she gave birth to a boy named Kambythet."

The queen exhaled before walking over to a gold gilded headpiece looked like it dated back to Rome. "After the disaster that occurred with their parents, the Egyptians were more than hesitant to receive another king from the same family. They thought that history would repeat itself but with the help of royal palace guard Khayman persuading the people, their fears wavered. Sadly, it did. He ordered that every statue of Isis and Ra be replaced with the images of Akasha and Enkil, he even handed northern Egypt to the Romans before they took it over completely. This outraged all parties involved but the worst was yet to come."

"Akantha was secretly seething with rage upon finding out that she wouldn't be next to rule, so she devised a devious plan to have her brother murdered. When her plan was executed, she returned to the palace only to find that everyone had been killed by the villagers." I gasped. Now I was starting to understand. This clearly was a jealousy issue.

"Now that her family was deceased, she thought that she could finally capture the throne but that wasn't the case. Due to having two kings that weren't exactly trustworthy to the people, the Egyptians simply refused to have another disappointment sit on the throne. Instead of killing her, they banished her to Rome, along with Khayman. Soon after that, she disappeared. 4 centuries and a half later, I became queen."

It was shocking to say the least. There was so much history when it came to Akasha. But something still didn't make any sense to me.

"Your majesty, if you do not mind me asking, who your sire is?" She smiled slightly before replying, "That is a closely guarded secret to be kept between the sire and their mate." Now that we have gotten that cleared, let me show you the duties that you will be taking over." The entire day was spent under the watchful eye of palace guards while I was taught everything from proper etiquette to handling public appearances. I was also told that before my coronation, I would be given a title. It actually helped me understand why I was being called 'Your Highness'. Before I left her presence, I had one question that needed to be answered.

"Your majesty, did Akasha have her children before or after she left the throne?"

Smiling, she replied "After she left the throne with Enkil." I nodded before we left her private quarters, having her guards escort us to my carriage. "Have a safe journey

By the time I got back to Marcus's palace, I was clearly wiped out.

I drew my bathwater and undressed. Pulling my hair into a loose bun, cutting the water off, I picked up a bottle of jasmine mixed with mint. I sighed happily, reveling in the scent. I poured 3 drops into the water and stepped into the water. Sighing again, I leaned back against the slanted wall of the Jacuzzi like tub and closed my eyes. Jasmine swirled around me, sending me to an imaginary island. After a couple of minutes, the water started to lose some of its steam. If the prince was here with me, he would warm it up. This random thought brought me to Marcus. Even though he was my sire, I wanted him to be my lover. It was great and all that he made me a sire to get to the throne, but what was weird that I wanted to be more. Huffing, I reached out to grab my towel but felt someone wrap it around me instead.

"Hello my sweet. I take it you have had a very relaxing bath, Yes?" I smiled. Yes I did, but it was missing him. This man didn't know how handsome he truly was. "I was just heading into the bedroom."

"Good, let me carry you there." Before I could utter 1 word, I was already off my feet. For some reason, I felt like a spoiled brat having a man carry me to my bed.

"Sweetheart, your thoughts as of late are concerning me. Before we go to bed tonight, we must get everything out in the open." He laid me down on the bed and waited patiently as I got dressed. After we got settled, he began to speak.

"I am hearing from sources that the queen has spoken with you about stepping down. She wants you to step up and her successor, correct?"

I sighed. I guess he had telekinesis because far as I had told no one what was said in her private quarters. "Yes. It's….a bit disturbing if I do say so myself. I mean, I don't know anything or anyone, and now this is being thrown at me. God, I'm losing my mind here." I jumped off the bed and walked to the French doors, looking out at the open ocean. "Even then, I would need a husband to rule beside me, and I have no one." I held my head down in shame. "If I can't find a husband Marcus, then the council won't accept me."

Marcus walked over to stand behind me and started rubbing the tension from my shoulders. "That is one subject that I wanted to discuss with you. You know that I am your sire and you are one of my children?" I nodded in affirmation. "Vampires have two types of venom that flows through our veins. 1 is used to kill; the other is used to make a mate. When I bit you, I injected you with the latter. Now, I know lately you have been thinking that the only reason I…have you here is because I need a wife to be eligible to ascend the throne. I truly wanted someone to love me for me. In a way, I'm glad that you will be queen." I turned around, shocked at what he said.

"Please, tell me you're saying what I think you're saying." I started shaking, nervous about what he would say. He laughed. "I think you know exactly what I am saying. I would like to have a relationship with you, if you say yes of course." I couldn't be happier. I wanted to shout from the top of Mount Everest.

"Yes! A million times yes!"


	6. Demonic Meeting

3 Months Later…

The very next day, we had begun planning the wedding. It was to be a lavish event, the first wedding in the vampire royal family in centuries. As for my coronation, it had been planned to fall in a year's succession of my marriage. This allowed me to get used to taking over the duties of a queen and give both parties a chance to know each other. I also found out that each vampire in the royal family was associated with an animal. I had yet to find out mine. The former queen had taken her leave 2 ½ months ago, dressed in the dress she wore at her very own coronation.

My fiancé and I were headed to the garden and talking about our upcoming wedding. Since I was going to be a member of the royal family soon, I didn't have to wear a traditional dress. Mark could wear whatever he wanted because he was next to be King. Today Mark and I were dressed casual with jeans, a t-shirt, and boots.

We were on the floor level of the mansion when a cold air whipped around us. I simply shivered, but Mark must have known something was coming. He pulled me closer and held his head down. After a few seconds, the wind ceased, but the coldness remained. We pulled our heads up, and were met with a pair of the coldest green eyes that I have ever seen. Those eyes belonged to Akantha. She was wearing a pair of True Religion jeans, Abercrombie and Fitch shirt, with a black leather jacket and biker boots. Her hair was pulled up into a messy ponytail. I started to speak, but Mark clamped his hand over my mouth. Instead of speaking out loud, he spoke telepathically.

"Don't say anything. She can't read minds, but she can detect fear." I nodded in confirmation and he slowly pulled his hand from my mouth. We stood there for who know how long, inspecting each other. Akantha made the first move, slowly walking around us. I could feel her eyes raking up and down my small frame.

"So, this is the replacement that is supposed to replace the former miscreant queen Samaria?" she walked in front of me and moved a piece of my hair behind my ear. I shuddered at her touch. It felt like snake skin. "I know they could have done better." I felt my muscles tense for a slight second. I hadn't even begun my reign and already somebody was questioning it. I decided to answer like I had been taught, politely, but let my feelings show through my words.

"You know, I was up for the throne, to reign as queen. But the royal court thought I was unfit." Mark chose that time to butt in.

"You know that's a damn lie. The people didn't want you as their queen. You family had brought shame to the people of Egypt." He growled. She cocked her head to the side and hissed, her green eyes sending a deadly glare towards my fiancé. I shrunk back against his chest. Her eyes then fell on me.

"What? You're not going to defend yourself?" I answered with silence. She turned her nose up. "You're more pathetic than I thought. You don't deserve to be queen. You're just a new blood" Her eyes moved over to Mark and she licked her lips seductively. "Maybe when the royal court comes to their senses and decide that I'm the better choice, I'll take this delicious specimen off your hands."

I immediately got angry, and an immense heat flowed over my skin faster than water. I felt my eyes burning like coal and my face started to feel tight. Akantha stepped back in horror and surprise. I heard a snarl come from my mouth, and truth be told it scared the shit out of me. Funny thing was, I felt more powerful than ever, and I liked it. Mark's voice was echoing in my mind, but I paid it no mind.

"If you wanted to be queen so bad, maybe you should have stuck around longer." I stepped closer to her and grabbed her face in my hand with a crushing grip, and I heard her bones cracking under the strain, which I smiled at. "You can fight me for the crown if you want; I know for a fact that I can take you on because in the end, we both know who will win, don't we? I squeezed her face tighter. "But if you so much as touch my man, I will destroy you. Your brother's murder will be a spanking compared to what I do to you." Her eyes widened at that revelation. She began to lose her confidence and was slowly receding into herself.

"Yea, I know about you. But you know what's even more exciting? You know nothing about me." I felt my anger subsiding and the burning sensation on my skin had left. My face loosened up and began to feel normal. I released her face and walked back to Mark, who looked at me affectionately and proudly. I wrapped my arms around his torso and laid my head on his chest. "Now if we are done, Mark and I have business to attend to." Together, Mark and I turned around and walked away from Akantha. When we had gotten far enough, Mark spoke.

"I don't think you're an animal."

"Well, what am I then?"

"Shockingly, I believe you are part demon."

What the young couple didn't hear was Akantha making a promise to herself to bring down the new King and Queen, but destroy the entire royal family as well.


End file.
